My name is Foday Salam Fofanah (CHO, CHA, Nursing Assistant) living in Yonibana Northern part of Sierra Leone. As the name implies “BETTER LIVES FOUNDATION” Has made my life to be better since I joined them. I became a member of the better lives foundation since 2009 when I was in senior secondary school. I started volunteering in this organization as a non-medical, pumping water into the tanks during the patient’s camps, doing cleaning (stumping) in the hospital vicinity after supplying water for the patients, also organising football matches between the National and the International volunteers at the end of each camp. 2010 proves to be a turning point to the right direction, I decided to joined the clinical team and in the year 2012, I was sponsored including fourteen(14) others to pursuing a nursing Assistance course at the Masanga hospital.

I thank the BLF million times over for their rescue and made me feel proud.

I was awarded as a best student when we sat to the entrance exams and throughout the course. Immediately after the nursing Assistance, I had the opportunity again to pursue a clinical studies at the Njala University in Sierra Leone whose fees is also paying by the better lives foundation. I came from a poor family, could not dream to afford my university fees and there was a time I gave up everything because there was not a single reason to do anything, I was really stressed and hassled in my life. I thank the BLF million times over for their rescue and made me feel proud. I’m once a mere petty farmer with my family, selling wood to feed ourselves, BLF has transformed my life to be a clinical Officer from the Njala University. Working with the BLF has been a great way to learn fast.

I gained incredible amount of professional experience through my volunteer work with the doctors and the nurses, for example: providing health care services and assisting surgeons in carrying out surgical procedure at the Yonibana Sai hospital. Create resourceful and flexible, able to adapt to change priorities and maintain a positive and a strong work ethics, I learned how to communicate and motivate individual to achieve organizational objectives. How would I start to thank this organization I don’t know, I don’t have the right words to show. To start with I want to thank all the the people who have donated and still donating in this organization for the benefit of we the Sierra leoneans towards our schooling and medically helping people in our country. Special thanks goes to Devi Patel for making my affiliation memorable and fulfilling, she went all the way for me. The vision and the concept of the BLF has had a great influence on me, improving my perspective on life and I will forever remain indebted to this organization and sincerely continue serving them forever to Last. A heartfelt thank you all.